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Yesterday I had an abundance of broccoli that I needed to use up so I decided to make macaroni and cheese. I am not a huge mac & cheese fan, only knowing the boxed kind. Last year I made my first homemade version. It was a recipe I saw on Food Network's "What Would Brian Boitano Make?" (Stop laughing. I actually liked his show. And not just because I had a crush on him 20 years ago.) His Cheese Cart Mac & Cheese was easy and delicious, although a bit on the "fancier" side as he used asiago, fontina and gouda. My bigger concern was how rich and fattening it was.

I had to find a low fat version that the family would still eat. When Brian (my husband, not Boitano) saw me making the cheese sauce last night he was excited until I told him it was a new lower fat recipe. He gave me "that look" and walked out of the kitchen mumbling something about "low fat, low flavor."

It was finally time for dinner and I served the mac & cheese with broccoli and Jennie-O Turkey Kielbasa. I'm happy to report that the meal was a hit (even Matthew had his first serving of mac) and everyone wanted seconds. (Which then brought up the debate of how low fat is it when you eat more than one serving...)

If you want to try it out, I got the recipe from LiveStong.com (Partner of the Lance Armstrong Foundation.) Here is the recipe.

Low Fat Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients and Utensils

To make a healthy version of baked macaroni and cheese the following items are needed:

3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp of flour
2 cups skim milk
2 cups reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups elbow macaroni
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 saucepans
8-cup casserole dish
Butter-flavored oil spray such as Pam
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
2 tbsp low-fat margarine

Procedure

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat the milk in a saucepan over low heat until small bubbles form. In a separate saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the flour and stir for two minutes. Slowly pour in the heated milk, whisking thoroughly. Stir over medium heat until the mixture thickens and begins to boil slightly. Reduce the heat to simmer. Stir in the cheese by handfuls until it is thoroughly melted. Stir in the salt, pepper and cayenne. Set aside.

Boil 6 cups of water. Add in the elbow macaroni and boil as directed, generally 8 minutes. Drain well and pour into the cheese mixture. Lightly spray the casserole dish. Pour the macaroni into the dish. Melt the margarine in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the bread crumbs and stir constantly until they are lightly browned. Spoon over the macaroni. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
Substitutions

Traditional macaroni and cheese is made with a cheddar sauce. Preferences may dictate alternate choices. Low-fat shredded provolone, pepper jack cheese, Monterrey jack cheese, or Colby may be used in place of the 2 cups of shredded cheddar. Velveeta cheese melts well; use the reduced-fat Velveeta to keep the fat content of the dish significantly lower.

Healthy Additions

Stir chopped parsley, chopped, cooked broccoli or sliced mushrooms into the macaroni and cheese mixture before placing in the casserole dish to add color and flavor.
Considerations

Make sure you cook the flour for the time directed; cooking thoroughly dissipates the flavor of the flour and enhances the flavor of the sauce. Carefully stir the cheese sauce until all the cheese is melted, monitoring the temperature to ensure that it does not scorch. Avoid adding foods containing any additional fats, such as crumbled bacon or butter, when serving. Garnish with parsley for additional color.

My note: The recipe didn't give serving size or nutritional info but when I used this online calculator to calculate this recipe serving about 6, the amount of calories was 300 and fat 16, which is not bad for homemade mac & cheese. (Also, that was a larger main dish size portion. A smaller 3/4 cup side portion what more than cut that in half.) Adding the Jennie-O Turkey Kielbasa and broccoli would add an extra 100 calories and 3 grams of fat per serving. It's a nice (occasional) comfort food treat.

Do you have a great low fat macaroni and cheese (or any other) dish we should try? Let me know!

One of my family's favorite bread is Banana Blueberry Bread. I found the recipe in a much loved cookbook Pillsbury Best Muffins and Quick Breads Cookbook: Favorite Recipes from America's Most-Trusted Kitchen that I received when I got married. I especially like this one because it is lower in fat. Here is the original recipe and my modified version.

Original Recipe

-- 1 cup sugar
-- 1/2 cup oil
-- 3 mashed ripe bananas
-- 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
-- 1 teaspoon vanilla
-- 2 eggs
-- 2 cups all-purpose flour
-- 1 teaspoon baking soda
-- 1/2 teaspoon salt
-- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)

Modified Recipe

-- 3/4 cup sugar
-- 1/2 cup oil
-- 3 very ripe bananas
-- 1/2 cup apple sauce or vanilla yogurt
-- 1 teaspoon vanilla
-- 2 eggs
-- 1 cup all-purpose flour
-- 1 cup whole wheat flour
-- 1 teaspoon baking soda
-- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
-- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
-- 1/2 teaspoon salt
-- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)

Directions:

1. Heat oven 350. Grease and flour bottoms only of pans. (I use nonstick spray and skip this step.) In large bowl, combine sugar and oil; beat well. Add bananas, yogurt, vanilla and sugars. Blend well.

2. Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; add to wet ingredients. Stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. Gently stir in blueberries. Pour into pans.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes (for mini-loaves) and 60-70 minutes (for a regular 9x5 loaf pan) or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes; remove from pans. Cool 30 minutes or until completely cooled. (Make sure to cool on a wire rack to avoid bread getting soggy.) Wrap tightly and store in refrigerator. (I just realized it said store in the fridge. I never have. It's gone before it gets a chance to spoil.)

I made this bread the other day but we were out of blueberries so Brian asked me to use chocolate chips instead. Chocolate?? You don't have to ask me twice! It was even yummier. :-)

Here are my "helpers" in the kitchen. ;-) And the finished product.

Where does the time go?? From her first birthday to her tenth birthday! Happy birthday my precious, Bella! You'll always be my baby. ;-)

I don't know what makes Brian happier - that his Packer football is back or that he has a new Packer fan to cheer with him.

Matthew could only take so much football cheering and then he conked out.

It's been a busy, busy week! Here are some things we've been working on. Besides getting ready for Bella's Angry Bird birthday party (which I'll post about next week) we also had two school fundraisers. Here is Brian working at the Mission Fiesta for Bella's school. Andrew was having fun throwing the ring.

Here are two gift baskets I put together for the Fall Festival/Auction for Andrew's school. I did a baby shower basket and a family movie night basket. I like the way they came out. It was fun to get creative.

Lastly, I've been baking for the Fall Festival bake sale. I made Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies. They are sooo yummy I hope they make it to the sale!

Okay, back to decorating. Have a great weekend!

Over the last week I was hoping to work on organizing my pantry and making master shopping lists. However, all four kids have been sick with colds and sore throats, which has made the baby extra cranky, so I didn't get very far. I did, however, realize how much I not only needed to organize and replenish the pantry but I needed to throw out old expired items. Yesterday I wanted to make quick BBQ chicken in the slow cooker. I saw this recipe on Pinterest. It looked super easy and I had all the ingredients.

Well, I had the ingredients but they weren't exactly fresh. My vinegar was expired not just by a couple months but by a few years - as in, I bought it about three pregnancies ago! (Yeah, you can see how often I used to cook homemade.) But that was fine. I had another kind of vinegar that I could use instead. Wait, that was expired too but not by so many years. However, it had a lot of gross gunk in it and I wasn't going to use it.

Okay, forget that recipe. There was this easy recipe that I found that didn't require vinegar. It sounded a bit weird to mix Italian dressing with BBQ sauce but all the reviewers raved about it. I ran to the garage pantry to grab a bottle of dressing. Brian likes it so I keep an extra bottle for him. What?? I ran out? Oh. Em. Gee. What kind of pathetic kitchen is this?!?

By this time my 20 minute window of opportunity was up and the baby was crying and JP spilled his milk. Ugh! Finally I just threw in the frozen chicken in the crock pot and poured a bottle of BBQ sauce on top (it was a miracle I had that) and flipped it on for 3 ½ hours. Soooo, my pantry needs more work that I thought. It'll be at least another week before I post about them.

I did, however, finish my shopping lists. I used to keep four post it notes on the fridge. One for each store I shopped at - Target, Costco, Trader Joe and the local market, although I usually only go to the market for quick last minute things. This made a quick run to the store easy because you grabbed the post it you needed and left the ones you didn't.

However, once I put up my menu board, it took up too much space, so now I use a narrow magnetic notepad sectioned off into four. Since I no longer make sporadic shopping runs, I don't need separate post its. I organize my shopping lists, check over the week's menu and do my shopping once a week.

Since I usually always buy the same items at Costco and Trader Joe, I use my iphone Shopper app. (The ads can be annoying so I paid the $1.99 to be ad free.) I made a template shopping list for each store. When it is time to shop I take down my fridge list and mark off what needs to be purchased to create an e-list for that week. I've used the e-list on my phone while I shop but I usually have one of the kids with me and they like to play with my iphone so instead I email the list to myself and print it out. It makes things so much easier!

For my Target shopping, a master list didn't work because it varied so much from week to week - from new shoes for the baby to a school notebook for Bella. A blank list worked best. However, my Target was recently redesigned and it is taking me some time to get used the new location of favorite items. I decided to make a shopping list with categories according to the layout of the store. That way I can start at one end and work my way around to the other side. I've used it a few time and it is so much easier to get things done.

For a larger view: View image

Well, that pretty much wraps it up. This is the system that works best for me. What works for you?

Over the next week I'll continue working on the pantry - oh, and don't even get me started on the bug infested wheat flour I had to throw away! Oh, well. On the plus side, the chicken with only BBQ sauce was a hit! Brian took leftovers for lunch and he said his coworker wanted to know where he got that delicious smelling BBQ chicken. If he only knew. ;-) Happy organizing.

UPDATE: For shopping list tips check out the blog Family Menu Planning Book.com by Catholic convert Elizabeth Hawbaker and her e-book Family Menu Planning: A Practical Guide to Mealtime Management. I just downloaded it and there is a lot of great info that will help me with my meal planning and shopping.

When I was younger I loved cork boards and bulletin boards. I would fill them with various photos, pictures, quotes, comics...whatever took my fancy. Even after Brian and I were married I had boards up in many of our rooms. (Heck, even my blog has too many photos on it!) However, after we did the remodel, I took all the boards down but one. Sure, the walls looked neater and more "grown up" but I missed them. But not anymore since I now have my online boards at Pinterest!

I had seen the word "Pinterest" at various blogs I follow but I had no idea what they were talking about. A couple weeks ago I finally checked it out and I am hooked! Instead of bookmarking things I want to remember, I pin it to my online boards. I not only have a quick reference but a pretty visual. And with their iphone app, I have it at my fingertips for those moments when I have to kill a few minutes while I'm waiting for something.

I must also admit that Pinterest has helped awaken my creative side. Instead of immediately dismissing a project or recipe as too hard or requiring too much time, I suddenly have the desire to give it a try! And even if the project is a dismal fail, at least I'll have something funny to post about later. ;-) So here are a few samples of pins on some of my boards - Styles I Like, Things that Make Me Smile, Recipes to Try, Organizing the Home, Decorating Ideas, Favorite Icons and Beautiful Places near My Backyard.

Disclaimer - Pinterest is fun but highly addictive. You must use self-control. (Don't say I didn't warn you.)

Hosted by Jen at Conversion Diary.

Blessed Junipero Serra & the Carmel Mission: I can't believe that it is July 1st already! Time just goes too fast! On the plus side, today we celebrate two great feast days, the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Blessed Junipero Serra. Living in California, on summer vacations we would often visit the various missions when we were younger. It's funny that years later my parish church is the Mission San Carlos (Carmel Mission.) Brian and I were married here and our children were baptized here. It really is a beautiful Mission and it has the distinction of being where Blessed Serra is buried. If you are ever in the area, you should make a visit. In fact...





Founder's Day: ...if you'll be in the Monterey Bay area tomorrow (Saturday, July 2) stop by the Mission for the Founders Day celebration. There is music and live demonstrations of how things were made during the early days of the mission (ie. food and crafts) and a special Mass at 5:30 PM. (There is a dinner afterwords but you need tickets for that.) It's always interesting and a lot of fun.





Cars 2 is too scary for little kids!: We are big Pixar fans in our house with the favorite movies of the kids being Cars, Toy Story and Walle. Bella used to be obsessed with Cars and had all the toys for it. Now Andrew loves Cars (and inherited the toys) and was so excited to see the new movie for his birthday. Since I am the one who usually takes them to the movies, Andrew was excited to have a daddy date with Brian as his movie buddy. Bella had a treat and was movie buddies with my visiting sister. From what Brian told me, the movie started out okay but it was really violent and should have been rated PG not G. By the last third of the movie Andrew (who just turned 4) got too scared with all the shooting, cars dying and the bad guys trying to kill Lightning. He started crying so Brian had to take him out to the lobby. Bella finished the movie with my sister and she enjoyed it but she is 9 years old. So if you are taking your younger kids to see it, beware.





Is there such a thing as low cal food that's yummy?: I've been trying to eat healthier so I can get off the rest of the baby weight (and then some) so I tried a Weight Watchers recipe for macaroni salad. I'm a little leery of "light" recipes but this was really good. I used bow tie pasta, substituted half the celery with red bell pepper and added a bit more fresh Italian parsley, which gave it a nice touch. It was really tasty. Check it out at Weight Watchers.com Recipies: Macaroni Salad





Summer Reading: Brian purchased the book Poor Banished Children and I hope to start reading it next week. There is an interesting interview with the author Fiorella De Maria over at Ignatius Insight. If I like this book, I'll check out her other novels.

He can't possibly be teething??: How soon can a baby start teething? Matthew is not yet three months but he is drooling and gnawing as if he's teething. It just seems too early for that.

"JFT": My "just for today" goals: First, when things get hectic I'll recall today's gospel reading "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" and I will turn my heart to Christ for strength. Second, I'll get that overflowing basket of clean laundry folded!

That's it for today. Have a wonderful 4th of July holiday! God bless America and watch over our troops.

Hosted by Jen at Conversion Diary. (Congrats to Jen on the birth of her daughter!! Read about it here.)

My youngest sister J.D. is visiting us for almost two weeks. We hired her to help me with the kids while I got my spring cleaning and some other projects done. It has been so nice having her around! Not just because the kids adore her and she's so good with them but i love spending time with her. I miss my sisters!

Speaking of missing sisters, My sis EL mentioned in her Quick Takes that she plans to travel from VA to CA to visit the family. Unfortunately that weekend we have another obligation at Andrew's school so we can't make the 400 mile trip to So Calif while they are here. I'm so bummed! Although in the back of my mind I'm trying to figure out if I could still make it happen...if I could get out of the obligation, have Bella and Andrew play hooky, get Brian to take a couple days off work and drive...hmmm, I don't know. We'll see what I can figure out.

This week I have been working on cleaning, organizing and purging all the unused items out of our house. During one of my breaks I was browsing Colleen's Green Grass Blog blog. Her post about a messy house was just what I needed to hear. She also mentioned a book that I was thinking of getting - Smart Martha's Catholic Guide for Busy Moms by Tami Kiser. I have to make an Amazon order tonight so I think I'll get a copy and check it out. I'll let you know what I think.

In our kitchen there are always big bowls of fresh fruit ready to be eaten. Unfortunately we had way too many bananas and they were getting pretty ripe. (I mean like "I'm starting to see gnats" ripe) so I made a batch of chocolate chip banana oatmeal cookies for the kids. (Yes, the kids. And no, that is not chocolate you see on my face.) I still had more bananas to finish so my sister tried a recipe we just saw on Mexican Made Easy for Mexican chocolate banana muffins. The recipe was super easy and instead of using chocolate chips you used crushed Mexican chocolate. They were so good and would taste great with a cup of Mexican chocolate. (if you haven't had Mex choc, it's like regular hot chocolate but with a cinnamony flavor.)

It's probably a little futile talking about hot chocolate when people are sweating in the heat of summer. I forget about that since Carmel has reverted to it's foggy, cold summer days. My poor sister (who lives in the high dessert) is used to the heat and she's shivering at our house. We crack up that we are in shorts and she's in a long sleeve tee and vest jacket. :-)

On Wednesday it was gorgeous and sunny outside at 10 AM so we decided to hit the beach. An hour later we had our picnic lunch packed and the kids were standing by the door in their shorts and sunglasses. Before leaving I looked out the kitchen window and saw the dreaded fog rolling in over the ocean. Oh no! We ran out the door, jumped in the van and I felt like John Cusack on that mediocre 2012 movie trying to race against impending doom. Well you can't beat Mother Nature and by the time we set up camp there wasn't a spot of blue sky, just thick gray. Oh well, we still had fun and truth be told, I'd prefer the fog over blistering heat.

Lastly, Brian and I got a special treat since he won a complimentary lunch at Pebble Beach. The last time we were there John Paul was a baby and we took him with us. This time Matthew is the baby but Jacinta offered to watch all four kids so we could eat alone. (I love that girl!) So we enjoyed our lunch child free - although we were happy when we received texta with pics of the kids having fun with their aunt. We could eat without worry. Here's a pic I took of us that day. Brian doesn't like it because he's squinting but I still think he looks great.

That's it for today. Have a wonderful weekend!!

It's been busy, busy, busy here with the last phase of the house remodel finally coming to a close, everyday family life, being preggers, and getting ready for a family trip. There has been no extra time! One good thing, however, is that it has forced me to take out my slow cooker and try out some new recipes. The other day I made Slow Cooker Carnitas from the A Year of Slow-Cooking Blog. It was sooo tasty and the family loved it! I'll definitely be making this again!

Hello?? Anyone home??

Yeah, I'm still here. I just never get around to having free time on the computer. It also doesn't help that with my iphone, I have everything at my fingertips and rarely use my desk top anymore, which is where I used to do my blogging. Anyway, I thought I would check in while I had the urge and the spare 10 minutes. (The fact that I am avoiding a huge mound of dirty laundry is irrelevant.)

Well, we have two more days left for our summer vacation. Two more days to train our bodies to get up early again. I'm going to miss those lazy mornings on September 1. By the way, are we the only people who aren't back in school yet?? All the local schools are back as early as Aug 10th but Bella's doesn't start until Sept 1. Seems too early to return in early Aug!

Speaking of iphones... (Remember? Back in #1.) I have to admit that I am changing my position on ebooks. I hated the idea of giving up the physical feel of a book in your hand and getting lost in the pages. An electronic device just seemed so impersonal...until I started using ibooks and other book apps. I used to never have time to read but now I fit it in often. I love having a library of books in my pocket!

I'm not a huge macaroni and cheese fan but I've always wanted to try and make it myself, rather than the salty boxed kind. I while back I was watching Food Network's What Would Brian Boitano Make? (Stop laughing. I actually like his show. And not just because I had a crush on him 20 years ago.) His mac and cheese looked so easy and tasty that I decided to give it a try. How did it turn out? One word - yum!! It is a bit on the "fancier" side as he uses asiago, fontina and gouda but the family loved it. It's too fattening for us to eat all the time (unlike some skinny people I know who never gain wait. Ugh.) but it is a nice occasional treat. The recipe is here: Cheese Cart Mac & Cheese.

This month John-Paul (and I) celebrated birthdays! My little JP is now a year old and I am now...well, let's not get into that. Here is a pic of the bday boy on his big day. He's been walking for a couple months now so he is quite mobile!

Here's another pic of our clan.

I'm running out of time and things to say so I am going to stop here. Heck, I didn't even do it on the right day so who cares if I don't do the right amount. Have a great afternoon!

I saw this lemon pasta dish at Faith & Family this afternoon and made it for lunch. I added some roasted chicken breast I had leftover and together it was perfect. Everyone loved it. Yum!

It seems that I hardly ever post anymore. Family life consumes all my time, which is good I guess. I just don't know how those super Catholic moms do it all - raise 10 kids, homeschool, write books, run the household...I get stressed just thinking about it! LOL! Right now if I can get through the day and care for the kids and get dinner on the table and maybe even get some laundry done and still keep a relative smile on my face, then I call that a heck of a day!

My sister EL (who sometimes contributes to RoL) is expecting Baby #2. She's in VA and we were worried that the baby would arrive during the blizzard but it's past her due date and still no bambino. Say a prayer that all goes well!

As I type I am listening to the new album from Fair - Disappearing World. Perfect mellow music. Love it. (Now I'm just waiting for the new Lifehouse. Hurry!)

Tonight Bella and I will attend her Little Flowers Catholic Girls' club. We haven't been in a couple months because there was so much going at home with the new baby and the holidays etc. Things are still busy but JP is much easier to care for and Bella misses her friends. I have to admit I am just as excited to go because I miss talking with the other Catholic moms. It's easy for a busy mom to fall into a duties-only rut and forget the importance of some female companionship!

And for the LF Valentine's party we needed to make a home-made item to share. I saw these Double Chocolate Cookies on Barefoot Contessa this week so Bella and I tried out the recipe. They are sooo yum! Make a quick batch before lent starts!

Okay, what other random thing can I talk about? Oh wait. Big news. We're adding on! No not to the family (give the body some time to heal!) but to the house. We're going to convert the garage into another bedroom. (Right now we only have two.) It took months to get through all the red tape and now we were given the go sign. The contractor told me that as soon as we clear out all the STUFF from our garage and the storage cabinets, they can start building. So guess what I'll be doing this weekend?? I think I better sign up for Danielle's 40 bags in 40 days for Lent!!

Lastly, here's a recent pic of John-Paul, now 5 ½ months.

Now that the weather is cooling down, it is the perfect time to dust off the slow cooker and whip up some tasty meals. I asked my sis EML to send me her fave recipes and she did. So now I'm sharing them with you! The charizo one looks really yummy although I have to tone down any spiciness right now or else JP will let his disapproval be known loud and clear. ;-)

Slow Cooker Lentil and Ham Soup (Bobbi's note: I think I'll try this one first.)

Slow-cooker Turkey Chili

Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup
I added some cooked chicken and cheese to each bowl when I served it.

Peppered Beef Soup

These three aren't slow cooker, but they are good and I assume you could throw everything in the slow cooker and cook it that way.

Devilish Chorizo Chili with Hominy

Minestrone
Edith LOVES this soup. (Bobbi's note: Edith is my adorable niece.)

Potato Broccoli and Cheese Soup

www.southernliving.com has a slower cooker section that has some good recipes.

This site ( crockpot365.blogspot.com) also has some good recipes.

Enjoy!

Here's a cool site to check out when you want to combine your love of cooking with your love of the Catholic faith - Catholic Cuisine Blog.

When you are done there, head over to Fr. Leo's Grace Before Meals.com.

If you are a fan of Food Network's "Throwdown with Bobby Flay" be sure to catch the Sept 9th episode. Bobby Flay challenges Fr. Leo (from Grace Before Meals) to a Steak Fajita matchup.

Bob Tuschman's blog announced the following about that runner up NFNS Jeffrey Saad:

OK, OK, we heard you! Despite Melissa's win, there are still a lot of Jeffrey fans out there. As I've always said, Jeffrey is bursting with knowledge he wants to share. You wanted more and Jeffery was game, so we produced a mini-series of videos based on Jeffrey's pilot episode. Presenting: The Spice Smuggler.

Jeffrey Saad takes you on a journey with Anise seed spice, Paprika, Garam Masala and Five Spice powder. He takes spices off the rack and brings them center stage. And as always, Jeffrey makes you need to taste the food.

Perhaps if it gets enough positive feedback we can get Jeffery on FN too!